This Close
by kirei chime
Summary: I borrowed Westlife's song to create a moment among the characters here.
1. Piece 1: His Excellency's Celebration

THIS CLOSE

_Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Wing, the chara, the artists, the songs, and the brands and labels stated herein. They belong to their rightful owners. (But some of the chara are mine.)_

_This story is based on the Irish boyband Westlife's song, "Close."_

Piece 1: His Excellency's Celebration

A.C 195. Friday evening.

Classical music floated in the air as the symphony orchestra played. Many people in formal military suits and most in gala attire were to be seen in this grand ballroom. Some approached a respectable and formal-looking young man.

"Happy birthday, Your Excellency, Treize Khushrenada," one of the old officers greeted him.

Treize raised his champagne glass and the old officer reciprocated his act.

"Thank you so much for coming, Lt. Neruda," he said to the European officer.

Some of the lieutenant's party began talking with his Excellency regarding warfare, politics, and all those boring but crucial gambits. Treize looked gallant in his gray tuxedo as he intelligently discuss about warfare. Despite all that, he couldn't help but serenely look at a certain woman from across the hall. The woman in question had her brown hair down and wore a red spaghetti-strapped silk gown which flowed to the floor. Her natural and fresh-looking makeup contrasted beautifully with her blood-red lipstick. She looked stunningly like a goddess or an angel with that tame face of hers, and Treize knew that this was just a camouflage to the woman's war freak nature. He knew her too well, for she was his right hand, Lady Une.

"His Excellency's manor is gallant, and grand, and big and beautiful, _ne_?" proclaimed one woman who was talking with Lady Une. The woman was too mesmerized to think of anything good to say.

Lady Une demurely smiled at the other woman's comment. Then, she caught sight of two familiar faces, Lucrezia Noin and Zechs Merquise. Noin was wearing her hair just the way she always did, and wore a light yellow Greek-inspired gown which flowed all the way to the floor and covered her shoes. Zechs wore a white tux, with the cardigan designed just like that of a Spanish _matador_.

"Ah, Noin, Zechs, there you are," she greeted them with her sweet voice, making them so upset.

Zechs cleared his throat while Noin looked at her as if Lady Une was a difficult Sudoku puzzle. They couldn't be fooled Lady Une's appearances.

"Good evening," they greeted her, nevertheless, just to be polite.

"Well, please, you can approach His Excellency," Lady Une instructed them. Then, to an usherette "Then, please escort them to the presidential table."

Later, she joined Treize, Noin, and Zechs at the presidential table. The emcee for the night announced His Excellency's birthday celebration in the most formal way. The officials and the other guests clapped, and clapped, and clapped, and clapped, and clapped, and clapped all the more when Treize began his speech regarding OZ's goodwill to both Earth and the colonies. He also had his discourse on his political views and dreams, and the guests accepted his views without question. This delighted Lady Une.

"This will serve my Treize-sama well," she thought in her dark mind.

During dinner, Treize excused himself as he had matters to attend to. He silently went out of the ballroom hall, walked through the long halls, and reached the common room where he had other guests having a party for His Excellency's birthday.


	2. Piece 2: In the Common Room

Piece 2: In the Common Room

Treize didn't knock at the door of the room; he just walked right in and found young people dancing at the center of the room. The room was a bit dim and was only lit up to look like a disco bar. To the left side of his view was Duo Maxwell who was playing DJ for the night.

"DJ Shinigami in the house!" Duo yelled as he continued doing his thing with the turntables.

The birthday boy recognized the song "Butterfly" which was popularized by Crazy Town, and Trowa Barton took the role as the lead singer for the night. The singer recognized the celebrant, and so he took the role as well of being the emcee in the celebration.

"Let's give it up for Treize Khushrenada, our birthday boy!" Trowa announced.

The crowd howled in delight as the handsome man in his tux walked in. The DJ stopped the song and played a happy birthday song, to which the people sang in greeting.

"Happy birthday, Treize," the young people greeted.

"Thank you, thank you for coming," he replied.

Duo began to play "In the End" by Linkin Park, and Trowa handed another mike to Treize. Treize did the singing parts and Trowa on the raps. No one seemed to mind the birthday boy in his tux.

The main course was buffet, for the party was informal. Treize had invited the Gundam pilots, their friends, as well as the scientists for his birthday. He had set up two parties: the formal one for the military and the socialites, and the disco party for the young at heart.

After eating, Duo resumed his DJ role and played some songs by Black Eyed Peas, and later, "I Can Transform Ya" by Chris Brown. To this, the old scientists danced and did some head spins and tumbling stunts. Quatre Winner did some grinding with Dorothy Catalonia and Relena Peacecraft, and Heero Yuy did some dirty-dancing with Sally Po, ex-Federation surgeon. Relena's classmates and some of Quatre's sisters danced with Treize as they drank booze on the dance floor. Later, Duo felt hungry again.

"Might as well grab something to eat," he greedily thought.

He programmed his station to continue playing rock and hip-hop songs, and proceeded to the buffet table where he met the equally hungry Quatre.

"Yo, Quatre, havin' fun?" he shouted amidst the noise.

"Yeah, sure did!" the cute blonde shouted back.

He and Duo had eyes wide open and tongue constantly locked to the upper right side of their lips as they grabbed tons and tons of food. Their hungry appearance didn't catch Treize's attention, as he was busy dancing to the rock songs with Relena.

"We're two hungry kittens," Quatre remarked.

"As hungry as can be," Duo replied.

When Quatre thought he had enough, he excused himself and went out of the room with four plates of food on each hand, three pairs of spoons and forks, and some sodas under his armpits.

In the next room, Trowa was silently sipping his soda when Quatre came.

"Sorry, I'm late," Quatre apologized.

The other guy's face was undecipherable as usual as he helped the blonde unload the food unto the table. When all of the foods were unloaded, Quatre opened the pockets of his pants and produced seven oranges. He knelt down and took out two packs of cake from his socks. When he placed the rest of the food on the table, he was met with Trowa's shocked expression.

"Where did it all come from?" he asked blankly.

Quatre smiled at him, and it reminded the shocked guy of a kitten's smile.

Then, Duo came in with a plate on his head, five loaded plates on each hand, seven sodas per armpit and a piece of chicken drumstick stuck to his mouth.

"Am I late?" he asked.

Quatre laughed as Trowa gave the third guy the same strange look he had given Quatre earlier.

"What's with the plate?" Trowa asked blankly again.

"Ah, you'll see," Duo answered.

The guy with the strange bangs helped his third friend unload all those foods. Looks like quite a party, eh? Then, Duo opened the pockets of his baggy pants and produced two tin foils.

"What are those?" Trowa asked.

"Cakes," Duo explained. "For the empty plate."

The three friends sat on the sofa, Duo and Quatre on one, and Trowa on the opposite side.

"_Itadakimasu_!" they said before digging into the food.

As Duo hungrily was hungrily eating his fried chicken, Quatre asked why Treize would invite them to his birthday when they were all enemies in war.

"Ah, the director said so," Trowa replied coolly.


	3. Piece 3: Gatecrasher

Piece 3: Gate-crasher

Duo heard some noise from outside the window, and he speculated that it might be coming from the bushes.

"What IS that?" he asked his two friends.

Trowa just shrugged his shoulders and continue eating his spaghetti. From the window jumped in a figure. He was breathing hard as if trying to catch his breath.

"_Omatase_ (Sorry to have kept you waiting)," the guy apologized.

"You are late!" Duo told him.

"And you gate-crashed," Trowa admonished him.

Quatre smiled and invited him in, "Come inside, Wufei."

Zhang Wufei brushed his arm against his forehead and removed his sweat.

"Can Nataku come and join too?" he innocently asked. He was referring to his massive mobile suit, his Shenlong Gundam.

"Wufei!?!?" Duo exclaimed in exasperation.

"Treize will have the five of us build pyramids if your Nataku will come in and destroy his manor," Trowa explained.

Wufei sighed and went inside the window and sat beside Trowa. He just had to park his Gundam outside the room where they were staying.

"Say, where's the party?" the latecomer asked as he received the loaded plate from his seatmate.

"It's in the next room for us," Quatre explained. "And in the grand ballroom for the socialites."

Wufei fumed as he looked at his food.

"Is Sally around?" he asked.

"Yeah, she was dirty-dancing with Heero….." Duo described. "Ouch!"

Quatre jabbed him by the ribs for he shouldn't have spilled the beans. Trowa noticed that the Chinese guy was affected over what Duo had said.

"Wufei, it's just a dance," he nonchalantly explained as he enjoyed his cake. "Don't be possessive on her."

"_Shikashi_ (But)….." Wufei sighed. "I guess you are right. She's not even my girlfriend."

To the mere mention of "girlfriend", Duo and Quatre looked at him with the same expression on their silly faces: eyes wide open in wonder, bulging right cheeks, and prawn tail coming out from their mouths. Wufei looked at them with disgust.

"Hey, cut it out!" he said in annoyance. Then he asked when he cooled down. "If the party is in the next room, then why are you here?"

"I'm playing DJ for the night, and, man, it is so tiring to be on the turntables all the time!" Duo enlightened him.

"I need to rest my voice so I decided to eat here," Trowa said. "After all, Treize provided this room for us."

Then, the room fell silent. All that can be heard were utensils banging against the plates and Duo's constant slurping and burping. Trowa examined the guys he was with tonight. Duo was wearing a checkered button-down shirt, a pair of khaki baggy pants, a pair of black and white rubber shoes, and a baseball cap which he wore in an inverted fashion. Quatre was wearing a blue medium-sized tee, a pair of baggy pants, and a pair of white Asics rubber shoes. He, meanwhile, was wearing a maroon small-sized vintage tee which emphasized his lean frame, a pair of black skinny jeans, and a pair of ankle-cut Converse sneakers. Wufei, however, looked out of place with his usual get-up (if you know what I mean). He decided to give Wufei a makeover after dinner.

"_Gochisousama_!!!!" everyone said after eating.

"Wufei, would you mind changing outfit for tonight?" Trowa suggested.

Wufei looked down on himself.

"Oh, right, I never thought I was going to a party," he said. "All I ever thought of was food."

"Hey, that's my line!" Duo protested.

Trowa smiled a bit as he got up and went to the back portion of the sofa where he kept his things. He got two paper bags from Guess and Converse, and handed them to Wufei.

"Wu-wu! You look cool!" Duo remarked.

Wufei's get up was the same as Trowa's, only that his black tee had a dragon design on it while his benefactor's had grayish tattoo designs in front.

"Where did you get all these?" Wufei asked.

"Oh, I had my photo shoot with Guess and Converse earlier today, and they gave me those as gifts," Trowa explained. "Don't worry, I have never worn them."

Wufei smiled. He pulled the rubber band from his hair and let his hair down.

"I think I look good with this," he said as he combed his hair with his fingers.

"Cool!" Duo exclaimed.

"You look great, Wufei," Quatre remarked. "Trowa sure has good taste."

Trowa blushed on Quatre's compliment, and Wufei looked at the blonde guy sourly.

"You are so obvious, Quatre," Wufei remarked dryly.

The excited Duo broke their conversation.

"Let's go now!" he smirked.


	4. Piece 4: Romance

Piece 4: Romance

When the four guys went back to the common room, Duo remembered that he had programmed 100 songs.

"Good thing I didn't run out of cool songs tonight!" he hummed as he went back to the turntables.

Quatre and Wufei mingled with the dancing crowd, and by now the Arabian boy noticed that Treize had changed outfit. He was wearing a crisp white button-down shirt, a pair of denim boot cut jeans, and a pair of black Nike rubber shoes. Noin and Zechs also joined their informal party. Noin had traded her gown for a summery tube sundress and a pair of brown flats. Zechs had the same outfit as Quatre. Lady Une was also dancing with some of Relena's classmates, and no one could take their eyes off her red Burberry spaghetti-strapped top, a pair of dark blue skinny jeans, and a pair of black Gucci gladiator heels. Even Relena looked cute with her yellow Lacoste polo tee, a blue princess-cut mini skirt, and a pair of pink-and-blue Converse sneakers. She looked cute with Heero, who was wearing a small size gray vintage tee (the same as Trowa's and Wufei's), a pair of boot cut denim jeans and a pair of gray rubber shoes. Sally looked sexy with her gray tank top, a pair of tight skinny denim jeans, and a pair of golden doll shoes. Even with her signature twisted hair, Wufei thought that she looked gorgeous tonight.

"Who is that?" some girls pointed at Zechs.

"Dunno, but he's cute!" some of Quatre's sister revealed.

At the other party, Zechs maintained his mask, but here, he removed it per director's request, and he sported his hair in a high ponytail. He didn't notice the other girls, not even the Winner girls, as he was busy dancing with Catherine and the circus ringmaster.

The old scientists enjoyed spinning when they heard a bone creak. Each of them knew that it belonged to Dr. J, and they decided to stop and keep the laughter among themselves.

"Ha! I guess that is exercise for my good ol' back eh?" was Dr. J's contented statement.

"I sure had fun!" Dr. S replied.

"Haha, I am sure that the party in the party in the grand ballroom is better," Master O speculated.

"Oh, and they have caviar too, so I've heard," Dr. J shared.

And so, the oldies silently exited the room and gate-crashed to the other party where the people seem not to mind Treize's absence. Even the ringmaster exited alone and join the socialites in the next party.

Ten- thirty at night.

That was the time in Trowa's watch. Hm, better get the night going on….

"Guys, I know it's kinda late, but the night is still young," Trowa remarked, making the crowd to stop dancing. "So, shall we continue????"

"Yeah!!!!" the party animals shouted.

And so Duo had another R&B song coming up, making the people sweat all the more on the dancefloor.

Later, Duo thought it's time to wind down, so he started to play a slow romantic one. He motioned Trowa to come and whispered his intention, and Trowa nodded in agreement before singing the song. When everyone realized that it was a romantic song, guys began pulling their girls close for a romantic dance. Some who didn't have partners went to the table to chow.

_You're all I ever need…._

"Noin," Zechs called her attention.

"Ye…yes?" Noin asked.

Noin thought that Zechs looked taller tonight. She had her arms around his neck, and his arms around her waist.

"You look….." Zechs stammered as Noin stared at him with expectant eyes. "You look gorgeous."

Noin smiled and blush, making Zechs pull her close to kiss her forehead.

_You give me strength, you give me hope…._

Sally and Wufei were holding each other's hands as they silently danced to the rhythm of the song. Wufei stared at her with intent, but Sally casually gave out her remark.

"I like your hair like that," she said.

"You think so?"

"Yeah. And I like your clothes," she said again.

"Trowa let me borrow these," he explained.

Sally let out a casual laugh.

"Oh, among the pilots, Trowa has the best fashion taste," she said. "And he's got a nice voice too."

Wufei frowned at her remark, but Sally continued to laugh as if it didn't matter.

"You know what Heero told me about you?" she asked.

He frowned again. He remembered what Duo had said regarding Sally doing some dirty-dancing with Heero.

"No," he replied and then asked. "What is it?"

"He said that you are open to your feelings only to me," Sally confessed.

"Huh?" was all Wufei could say. Did Heero really say that, or was it just her observation?

As usual, Sally just gave out her smile. Maybe Heero was right. Or maybe Sally was right—if ever she just made that Heero excuse. Wufei forgot everything else but leaned forward and gave her a soft kiss on her lips. Sally didn't refuse, and wrapped her arms around his neck. They continued kissing as they danced.

_You give me someone to love, someone to hold._

"Sorry, I don't have a gift for you, Treize-sama," Lady Une apologized.

"It's all right," he replied.

Treize had one hand on her waist, the other holding up her hand as if in a traditional Victorian ball dance. Lady Une's free hand was on his shoulder.

"I hope it wasn't Trowa singing the song," Lady Une remarked.

"Why not? He's a good singer," Treize commented.

"Yeah, I know, but it is better if you had sung the song for me," was her selfish answer.

"But you see, it's my birthday, and he is merely singing that song so the two of us can have something to dance about.

"Oh, I guess you are right, Treize-sama…."

Lady Une leaned forward and kissed Treize on his lips, to which he responded without hesitation. I think it is a better gift to His Excellency, from her.

_When I'm in your arms, I need you to know…._

"Heero," Relena opened up first. "Do you still have plans to kill me?"

Heero looked at her coldly.

"Why would I even do that?" he asked.

Relena laughed. "Because I happen to know a lot of your secrets."

"But you won't tell them, will you?"

"Of course not, because if I do, I am sure you'll come and hunt me down."

Heero smirked at her remark. Why! Relena surely knew him by heart!

"Relena, I have never been like this my whole life," Heero shared. "I am boring, brainy, dangerous—but never emotional."

"So?"

"So I guess this night is a chance for me to show you a different side of me," Heero explained.

Relena rolled her eyeballs and laughed. "Are you some kind of polygon?"

He knew she was joking, so he laughed a bit with her. Later….

"Uh, about me dancing with Sally, were you jealous?" he asked.

"_Iie_ (No). And I was also dancing with Quatre, were you jealous?" she questioned back.

"No, and I know why I am not," he responded.

"_Doushite_ (Why)?" Relena asked.

Heero pulled her close to an embrace and held her tight.

"Because you are mine," he admitted. To this confession, Relena blushed and smiled.

The whole lot of lovers continued flocking to the dancefloor as Duo continued playing and Trowa, singing.

_I've never been, I've never been, this….close…._

-_owari_-


End file.
